Everyone is safe and sound back home and we are all enjoying the warm air, red wine and great food in town. The trip went really well this time around. Not only did we have near perfect weather but we were also fortunate enough to all stay happy & healthy throughout the entire expedition. The members are slowly leaving and Ben and I will be heading back to our home countries after the weekend.
Ben, Brian and Erika on the Polish Glacier
The Polish Glacier Direct
I must say, it was really great to climb Aconcagua instead of just walking up it. At 3am Ben, Chris, Erika, Mitch and Brian set off for the foot of the Polish Glacier. Shortly after setting out, Mitch decided it just wasn’t his day and returned to camp 2 and the 4 of us carried on into the darkness. We chose not to rope up for the first 300M of the climb but as the angle increased we tied in and made things a little more secure.
The route is actually pretty straightforward despite its reputation. In my opinion the most important thing is speed. We never once pitched out the climb choosing instead to simu-climb with a running belay. This offers good protection as well as being able to keep moving at all times. The climb is about 40 degrees up to 70 degrees in the bottle neck area and above. Its a great steep snow climb with amazing views but beware, once you are at the top of the face it is still at least 2-4 hours to the summit, depending on conditions and fatigue.
Once you arrive at the top of the face, the technical portion of the climb is over and now the thin air at nearly 6900M is a lot for some to deal with. Amazing views though. We made our descent via the False Polish route and back to camp 2.
Chris in the Bottleneck
It’s great to be finished with another successful season on Aconcagua. This year we had small groups and all became great friends. We were also fortunate enough to have Augistina from Ushuia cooking for us at base camp. She really went out of her way to accommodate us and make our days at base camp really comfortable. Oh yeah, she is also an amazing cook. A big thanks also to our great members this season. Greg, Brooks, Isabel, Erika, Marty, Mitch and Brian, it was great to have you all on the hill with Ben and I.
Chris from Mendoza.